“Hey man! It’s so great seeing you again.” AJ took a deep breath. He started heading to the baggage claim w/ Howie leading behind.
“So, what people are you managing?” AJ crossed his arms and leaned against a bar. Howie switched his bag to the other shoulder and let out a sigh.
“galaxE.” He glanced up at signs over the exit doors. “You should really see these girls. They’re VERY talented.”
“galaxE? I think I’ve heard of them. They sound really familiar.”
“Jodi, Lyndsee, Liz and Kelly. They’ve been singing since they were 14. I love ‘em.” Howie smiled.
“Yeah. I shouldn’t be saying this, but that one that’s tall, blonde, blue eyes…”
“Jodi.”
“She’s very pretty.” AJ raised his eyebrows and stood by the metal belt as a loud horn beeped through the airport.
“She handles the business a lot. I’ll send you tickets the next time they come here. Backstage too.” Howie grabbed a black bag and followed AJ to the parking lot.
“Ok. Oh God. Do you know what Nicks doing?” AJ laughed as he popped the trunk.
“No. Playing basketball? Porn star?” He joked.
“Close…real close.” AJ backed out carefully.
“This is a nice truck. So, just tell me what he’s doing!” Howie exclaimed.
“Well, last night, I went to a Playboy Bunny Mansion Party. And guess who was hanging out in a red robe with chicks all over him.”
AJ nodded his head at the bewilderment on Howie's face. “That’s weird. But we also thought Brian would become a priest.”
“Close. He sings gospel.” AJ clicked the turn signal. He glanced at Howie who was staring out at the road ahead of him. He started feeling the sense of Howies' silence.
“I’m never going to forget that time of my life. It was quite an experience.”
Howie looked at AJ and wondered how he knew what he was thinking. “Me either. I still don’t know how I could spend so much time with you guys without shooting myself.” Howie laughed. “That is the greatest career to have. But no matter how much I miss it, I’m glad to be behind the scenes again.”
“How did you find these girls?”
“I was looking at websites on the net when I passed a group called Caution. They had bios and pictures of themselves. They sounded interesting, so I contacted them and flew them down to my studio. When I saw them walk through those doors, I knew they were potential.” He opened his carry-on bag and pulled out a CD case. “I have their CD right here.” AJ glanced at the cover. Four girls stood broadly. They all had sexy expressions frozen on their face. He saw three wearing silver mini skirts and white tube tops. The fourth had on white capris with a silver spaghetti strap.. Her hair was blonde and very long. Her blue eyes shone brightly with a white tinge surrounding them. It was the girl he liked.
“Cute, aren’t they?” Howie grinned and pressed buttons prestigiously.
“Yeah.” AJ heard a low voice boom with music beginning the song. When he heard the voice, it took over his body. He felt like he was floating away. Jodi appeared in his thoughts. She was in all white. Sparkling wings peeked over her shoulders, half-hidden from her golden strands.
“Dude, I miss them already!” Howie joked. “Jodi and Lyndsee were HUGE Backstreet fans when they were just starting out. Guess who was Jodis’ favorite…”
“You?” AJ pivoted the wheel.
“Nope, you.”
AJ laughed. “What are the odds?” Her face faded from the glowing body. Another appeared in the blank spot. Her eyes glared into AJs’. Then he realized who it was.
“I’m sure you have a chance.”
“Naw man, I have a girl.”
“Oh.” Howie scanned through the tracks and sat back. “What’s her name?”
“Starr. I teach her at UCLA. Great actress.” AJ pushed the thought away.
“Cool.” They drove the rest of the way speechless.
“Ugh, I feel so fat!” Starr sighed as she looked in the mirror.
“No you don’t! You have a great body.” Trinity tried on a hat.
“Thanks…but-“
“What’s the matter Starr?” Jamie walked over to her. Starr glanced at Jamie through the mirror.
“Nothing-“
“Something is wrong. You never complain about what you look like.” Jamie frowned and put her hands on her shoulders. “What is it?”
Starr stared at herself in the mirror. Jamie shook her head and picked up her clothes to try on.
Trinity glanced at Starr a couple times, then headed to the cologne section. Starrs' eyes lowered to her stomach. Just thinking about AJ made bulges and dimples form on her thin body. Tears crept to her eyes but she held them back. Jamie passed her to put some clothes on the rack. She noticed her face. Jamie lowered her head to the clothes and very slowly turned the hangers.
“Why doesn’t AJ like me?” A muffled, low murmur sounded through the silence. Jamie turned around and stayed quiet as Starr spoke.
“Am I fat? Ugly? Not good enough for him to stay home with me instead of going to that party last night?”
“Oh honey. AJ loves you.” Jamie hugged Starr.
“No he doesn’t.”
“Starr, I can totally see it in the way he looks at you. So you’re mad because he went to a party?” Jamie asked her as they sat down in two waiting chairs.
“Yeah.”
“Don’t you think it’s a little…over exaggerated to be mad at him for being a guy?” Jamie waited for her friend to lecture the accusation. Starr didn’t say anything. She just got up, picked up her bag and headed toward the door.
“Where are you going?” Jamie stood up and immediately knew it was the wrong thing to say.
“Taking a walk.” She walked through the mall relentless of anything going on around her. She stopped at a coffee store and bought a cappuccino. She sat and observed the couples and teenagers walking by. She laughed to herself as she remembered her high school days. For their senior prank, her and her friends took fifteen boxes of ALL laundry soap and poured it into the fountain in front of the school. There were bubbles EVERYWHERE. It was great. Then sh-
“Hey baby!” A voice from above her head sounded. She looked up and saw AJ standing there. He wasn’t smiling, but it was a happy look. A kiddish feeling come over her while she looked up at AJ. Just the fact that she was “with” this hot, popular guy made her feel all jittery. She stood up with a smile. She glanced into AJ’s eyes for a split second, then looked to the man standing next to him.
“Omigosh, Howie?!”
“Yup, that’s me.” Howie winked, sticking his hand out. She put hers softly into his. When she felt his firm but calm shake, she all of a sudden was stuck like a bolt of lightning. She looked back to AJ with a planted frown.
“Can we talk?”
“Sure.” AJ turned to Howie and with out saying a word, Howie nodded and headed to the coffee counter. AJ sat down next to Starr in a cold metal chair.
“Why haven’t you been talking me, Starr?”
Starr cocked her head surprisingly. “You have no idea?” AJs’ eyes scanned store windows and passing shoppers. When he didn’t answer, Starr continued. “You didn’t ask me. When you don’t ask that’s just like lying to me.” She kept her eyes glued to his every move. His head slowly eased up, his dark chocolate eyes melting into hers.
“If you think some fake, airbrushed, silicone id going to make me change my mind about you, you don’t know me.”
He was right. She doesn’t know him yet. They’ve only known each other for three weeks.
“Maybe that’s the problem.”
“What?”
“We don’t’ even know each other yet, AJ.” She smiled at a lady pushing a stroller.
“We can get to know each other.” AJ placed his hand gingerly on her bare knee, squeezing it. Starr jerked away, bursting into giggles. She tried to stop herself, sniffing.
“Sorry, I'm a little ticklish there.” She smiled and laughed to herself.
“Good to know.” He grinned.
After a silence that seemed like an eternity, she softly began to speak. “Maybe we should become friends before lovers.”
Those words seemed to pierce his heart with a 20-inch wide nail. He liked….loved her. Can’t he love her and become friends at the same time? “Starr-“
“No, I think that’s a good idea. Seriously, I mean wouldn’t we end up having a stronger relationship if we knew more about each other in the begging?”
“Yeah but-“ He paused mid-sentence and inhaled sharply, “I love you.”
Starr stared long and hard into AJs eyes. She could feel AJ inside her. He filled her whole body and took away all that hurt. “And I love you.” She felt a hand on her shoulder, but ignored it. AJs face got closer and closer. With their lips an inch apart, their eyelids closed. It was a simple kiss. No tongue, only connecting lips. But to both of them, that one kiss held the power and meaning of a lifetime. AJ leaned away a little bit, but Starr stayed in the same position. A smile spread over her face. “Forget what I said about the friends thing.” AJ laughed, nodding his head up behind her. Starr turned around and glanced up. Jamie smiled down on her with big bright green eyes and blindingly white teeth.
“How sweet! Hey girl, are you coming home with us?”
Starr glanced at AJ, then turned back to Jamie. “I’m gonna catch a ride with AJ.”
“Ok, bye sweetie.” She walked away, waving. Starr chased after her.
“Listen, I’m sorry I was such an Eeyor.” She smiled lovingly.
“Oh no, don’t worry honey. I understand.”
“OK.” She sat back down with AJ. She noticed Howie sit down cautiously.
“Hi, sorry I took him away from you so sudden.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Howie winked again. Starr smiled and shook her head.
“What about going out to lunch?”
“Chinese?” Howie sipped from a steaming cup, raising his eyebrows.
“Sure.” AJ looked at Starr for approval.
“Fine with me.” She stood up, pushing in her chair. They all headed to the parking lot. AJ slipped his hand into hers. She looked up at him. He kissed her forehead caressingly and smiled.
Starr snarled her nose as the waiter set a plate of sushi in front of Howie. AJ laughed at the expression on her face.
“What! That’s nasty.” She swallowed her water.
“No. It’s goood.” Howie had a wide grin on his face.
“Whatever. So what are you doing now Howie?” She stuck her fork in the chicken lying in front of her.
“I’m a group manager.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I also do acting. Right now I’m managing this group called galaxE.”
“Not uh!”
“Yeah.” He nodded his head and devoured a sushi roll.
“I love them! That’s so awesome.”
AJ stopped twirling his fork in the noodles and stared at plate. Jodi somehow found her way back into his mind. There was just something about her that he liked so much. He heard various sentences as Howie and Starr talked about them, and how he could set up a day for her to hang out with them. He didn’t want them to. Starr would expect him to go with her and he didn’t know if he could help himself. He heard the conversation turn to Starrs acting career.
“I could probably get you an audition.”
“Thanks. I would really appreciate that!”
“No problem.”
“Are we all done here?” AJ eagerly threw his napkin and reached for the check.
As his hand touched it, Howie pulled it away. “I got it.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah!” He put a card on the black tray.